"Mark your calendars now for the last week of December," The Orinda News wrote in its October theater preview, "the Orinda turns 85 on Dec. 27." The same article says Sony and Columbia Pictures made a new restoration of "Texas," the movie that opened the theater, and that the Orinda will show it before anyone else. Most holiday calendars peak early in December and taper off. This year Orinda's runs the other way, building toward a Sunday evening two days after Christmas.
Dec. 27, 1941, and Dec. 27, 2026
The dates match on purpose. Donald Rheem built the Orinda Theatre with architect Alexander Aimwell Cantin, and it opened on Dec. 27, 1941, showing "Texas" with William Holden, The Orinda News recounted for the theater's 80th anniversary. The same story notes that the building was slated for demolition in 1984. Preservationists saved it, and it reopened in 1989 with two more screens. The original lobby and main auditorium were left intact, and the theater is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Eighty-five years after opening night, the theater's own listing puts "Texas" on Sunday, Dec. 27, 2026, at 5 p.m. and calls the screening an 85th Anniversary Party. Walt Disney's "Fantasia" follows for four days, Dec. 28 through 31.
The rest of the season leads up to that week. Here is the full calendar, in order:
| Date | Event | Where |
|---|---|---|
| Thu., Nov. 19 | Light Up Orinda | Lighted trees around town |
| Sat., Nov. 21 and 28 | Orinda Farmers' Market, 9 a.m.–1 p.m. | Orinda Way |
| Tue., Nov. 24 | Classic Movie Matinee, "Now Voyager," 1 p.m. | Orinda Theatre |
| Sun., Nov. 29 | Cinema Craft Series, "Rashomon," 1 p.m. | Orinda Theatre |
| Wed., Dec. 2 | Gingerbread House Contest drop-off, 5–7 p.m. | Orinda Community Center |
| Fri., Dec. 4 | Winterfest, from 5 p.m. | Community Center and Library Auditorium |
| Sat., Dec. 5, 12, 19 and 26 | Orinda Farmers' Market, 9 a.m.–1 p.m. | Orinda Way |
| Thu., Dec. 17 | "The Polar Express," free, 6:30 p.m. | Orinda Theatre |
| Sun., Dec. 27 | "Texas," 85th Anniversary Party, 5 p.m. | Orinda Theatre |
| Dec. 28–31 | "Fantasia" | Orinda Theatre |
The Lights Go Up First, With a Dozen More Trees
The Light Up Orinda organizers have announced Nov. 19 as the start date. The program is now an official program of the Orinda Community Foundation, and donors are recognized through the foundation instead of on a separate list. For 2026 the organizers added 12 trees, including some near BevMo, across the street at 140 Brookwood, and a few more at the Community Center.
There is a practical upgrade too. The organizers installed three new electrical outlets, which they hope will keep the lights on through the El Niño storms forecast for this winter. They put annual operating costs at about $35,000. Co-leaders Carol Brovelli and Kim Wirtz Straub sign the announcement.
November at the Theater Runs on Older Films
While the lights go up, the theater's late-November schedule leans on its archive. On Tuesday, Nov. 24, the monthly Orinda Classic Movie Matinee shows "Now Voyager" at 1 p.m., with short subjects, the way it was presented when it played the Orinda as a new release in 1942. So Thanksgiving week starts with a film that first played this screen less than a year after the theater opened.
On Sunday, Nov. 29, Akira Kurosawa's "Rashomon" screens at 1 p.m. It is the second-to-last film in the Cinema Craft Series. The Orinda News reports that the series of art, foreign and unusual films did not draw enough support or sales in 2026 and will not return next year. Its final feature, "The Country Girl" with Grace Kelly, is set for Dec. 27. The anniversary date also ends a program, in the same building.
Winterfest Moves the Season Down Orinda Way
The town's main civic event happens one block from the theater. Orinda Parks and Recreation holds Winterfest on Friday, Dec. 4, rain or shine, at the Orinda Community Center, 28 Orinda Way. It is free and open to everyone, according to the City of Orinda's announcement. The evening moves between two buildings, the Community Center and the Library Auditorium. The city's tentative schedule:
- 5 p.m.: The Friends of the Orinda Library Holiday Book Sale opens in Room 7, and diaper bundling with Mindful Littles begins in Room 9.
- 5:30 p.m.: The Gingerbread House Contest begins in the Community Center lobby.
- 6 p.m.: The mayor speaks in the Orinda Library Auditorium, and contest winners are announced at 6:05.
- 6:10 p.m.: The Orinda Intermediate School Choir and New You Dance Center perform in the auditorium.
- 6:30 to 8 p.m.: Back at the Community Center, with OTAC children's crafts in Room 5, refreshments in Room 4, a photo spot in the courtyard and a dance party with AJ and New You Dance Center.
The book sale is new this year. It is the first time the Friends of the Orinda Library have held one at Winterfest, with children's books, current novels, paperbacks, art books and puzzles. The gingerbread contest is in its fourth year, created and sponsored by the Orinda/Tabor Sister City Foundation. Entries must be edible and dropped off at the Community Center on Wednesday, Dec. 2, between 5 and 7 p.m. The Orinda Police Department's Stuff a Cruiser toy drive accepts new, unwrapped toys at Winterfest or at the police department. Mindful Littles has an Eventbrite page for volunteers. The Orinda Community Foundation, which now runs Light Up Orinda, also sponsors the evening.
Saturdays and One Free Thursday Fill the Gap
The three weeks between Winterfest and the anniversary are quieter, held together by two regular fixtures and one free screening.
The Orinda Farmers' Market runs all year, every Saturday from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Orinda Way, in front of Rite Aid and Community Park. Its 2026 dates include Dec. 5, 12, 19 and 26. The Dec. 26 market is the day before the anniversary screening.
On Thursday, Dec. 17, the theater shows "The Polar Express" at 6:30 p.m., and the listing marks it free. It is the theater's only holiday family screening on the December calendar before the birthday week.
Birthday Week in Theatre Square
By Dec. 27, Theatre Square has something it lacked last December. Sorso Bar and Bites, a bar serving Italian small plates at 2 Orinda Theatre Square, Suite 106, opened this fall, the Bay Area Telegraph reported. That gives the anniversary week a place nearby for a drink or dinner before a 5 p.m. show.
The Orinda News says ticket prices vary across the theater's mix of events and recommends buying in advance through orindamovies.com. The theater also now sends a weekly email newsletter, with sign-up on the site's front page. The anniversary screening is a one-day event, and the restoration premieres in Orinda.
At The Beaubelle Group, we watch Orinda's calendar as closely as its market, because landmarks like the Orinda Theatre are part of what gives a house here its value. If the season has you thinking about where your own home stands, we would be glad to start with a Complimentary Home Valuation.
